The Basement Box
by singsongsung
Summary: No.12. Rory/Logan. Emily's got a gift for them.


**The Basement Box**

**A/N: **Here we go, another random installment in the lives of Rory and Logan. This one is connected to **Two TwentyNine** and it's prequels/sequels. Thanks to everyone who reviewed all the others, you guys are so great. :) So, this one was really random, written on a whim (I was eating a cadbury cream egg, and it just sort of came to me...) I don't like it as much as the others, but you can judge. **Rayc Petite**, I understand what you mean about putting all my oneshots into a story. I've thought about it, but for now I like them as one shots. If I end up writing a lot more, then I will end up putting them all together. Wow, this is my longest A/N yet. Okay, well, I'll stop babbling now and you can read! (And review. Pretty please.)

"Mom, can we just go in?"

"Rory, honey, light of my life." Lorelai grabbed her arm and looked at her seriously. "I'm trying to save you from torture here."

"Mom, I've been up since five o'clock this morning throwing up everything I've eaten in the past three days. I want to go home and sleep." She leaned into her husband, who immediately wrapped his arm around her.

"Jeez, Lor, can't we just go in?" Luke asked.

She whirled on him. "Oh, _no._ All of you are too trusting. You need to put up a wall. You, Emily, and a great big wall in between the two of you."

"Mommy," whined Will.

"Sweetie," she said, ruffling his hair affectionately. "Your grandmother has something up her sleeve. I could hear that smile on the phone."

"Mom!" Both Rory and Will protested.

"I _know_ that smile, guys. It's the I've-got-something-on-Lorelai smile. The I'm-going-to-hold-it-over-her-head-until-she-dies-and-she-will-die-first-because-I-will-outlive-everyone-out-of-spite smile!"

Three-year-old Emma raised her eyebrows and looked up at her mother. "Mommy?"

Lorelai bent down so that she was eye-level with her younger children. "Listen, guys, do you remember the game plan?"

"Drink, eat, and run," Will repeated.

"That's my boy!"

"Mom, stop corrupting your children and ring the damn doorbell."

Lorelai turned to Emma. "Baby, are you scared? I can tell you the cow herderess story."

"Mom! If you don't ring the bell, I will."

Lorelai sighed and looked at Logan. "You. Be your most charming wonderful self, and jump in with some sort of rich-people anecdote if my mother begins to laugh her I've-got-something-on-Lorelai-and-I'm-going-to-hold-it-over-her-head-until-she-"

Luke rang the doorbell, cutting her off.

"Okay! Fine! Don't believe me."

Emily opened the door, a big smile on her face. "Lorelai! Rory! Luke, Logan. William, Emma."

"Hi, Mom," Lorelai replied.

"Hello, Lorelai. Rory, how lovely to see you."

Rory held back her laughter as her mother mimicked Emily behind her back, one hand on her heart. "Hi, Grandma."

"Emily, lovely to see you again," Logan added.

Lorelai mouthed the next words along with her mother: "Why, Logan, it's always a pleasure."

"Grandma, I lost a tooth," Will announced.

"Did you, William? And what did the tooth fairy leave for you?"

"A dollar."

"Come in, all of you, let's have drinks. Beer, Luke?"

"He'll have a martini," interrupted Lorelai. "So will I."

"And, Rory, will you have a martini, too?"

"Um, no thanks, Grandma. Soda's fine."

Emily laughed. "Really, dear, you're twenty-five. I'll make you a martini."

Rory and Lorelai exchanged a look. "Grandma, really," Rory said. "I'll have soda. I can get it. Soda for you guys, too?" she asked her brother and sister, tickling them.

"Rory, have a martini."

"Mom! She wants soda, okay? Actually, so do I."

"No alcohol, Lorelai? Are you pregnant again?"

"No, _Mother_, I'm not. I just don't feel like drinking tonight." She shared another look with her daughter.

"Rory, you look pale," Richard commented as he entered the room. "Hello, everyone."

"Would you like a martini, Richard? Lorelai's given up hers. She doesn't _feel_ like drinking tonight."

"She doesn't_ feel_ like drinking tonight? Lorelai, are you feeling alright?"

"My God, I hate it when they do this…" Lorelai muttered. "So, Mom, Dad," she said in her sugary-sweet voice.

"Yes, Lorelai?" Emily responded as she sat down.

"Is today a…special occasion?"

"Not that I know of," Emily replied innocently.

"Oh, alright. Okay. I was just…you made it seem like a very big deal for all of us to be here tonight. Luke and I, Rory and Logan, the kids. All together." She blinked, looking just as innocent as her mother.

"I just wanted to have a family dinner."

"Oh, alright. That's a…good idea. Bonding. Nice."

Rory bit her lip, her eyes darting between her grandmother and mother. She felt Logan reach for her hand and intertwine their fingers. She shot him a grateful smile.

"How is everyone?" Emily asked.

"We're all fine, Mom."

"There's no need to be so short-tempered, Lorelai."

Lorelai put down her soda and marched over to the drink cart determinedly.

"What are you doing?"

Lorelai poured herself a glass of wine. "I just really needed some booze before I heard this from you," she replied, sitting back down. "Okay. What is it?"

"What is what, Lorelai?"

"You're smiling. You know something I don't know. Or you know something _about_ me that I haven't told you yet. Now, I know you won't admit it yet, but I know that you know."

"Honestly, Lorelai, you're so paranoid." She turned to her granddaughter. "Rory, your skin looks wonderful this week." She plastered on a big smile. "Glowy," she said with a happy shrug.

Rory's jaw dropped. "How do you _know_?"

"Know what, dear?"

Rory turned to her mother, looking desperate. Lorelai shrugged. "I tried to warn you, kid."

"But _no one_ knows."

"Knows what, dear?"

Lorelai sighed and placed her hand gently on her daughter's knee. "She's going to make you say it, babe."

Rory sighed deeply. "Grandma, Grandpa. We have something to tell you."

"What the hell is going on?" Luke whispered to Lorelai, and she motioned for him to be quiet.

_"Do_ you, dear? What is it?"

"Rory and I are expecting our first child, Emily," Logan interjected.

Lorelai shot him a smile. She would never like him, but he understood her daughter, and she had to give him credit for that.

"Are you, really? How delightful. Of course, I would have been happier if I'd heard it from you first."

_"No one_ knew!" Rory insisted.

_"_Shira knew."

_"_What? How?"

"She found the test in your garbage can."

"She goes through our garbage?! God!" Tears flooded her eyes, and she brushed them away angrily.

"Honey, calm down," Lorelai said gently. "It's okay. Your hormones are all messed up."

"We've bought you a house in the Vineyard," Richard said quietly.

Rory looked over at him. "What?" she asked softly.

"The Vineyard's a wonderful place to take children on vacation. Lots of room to play," Emily added.

"I…thank you…" Rory looked over at her mom, totally baffled.

"Don't look at me, sweets. I didn't get a house. I got a job as a maid."

"Lorelai, honestly!"

"What? I did." Lorelai shrugged as she smoothed Emma's hair.

Emily handed her drink to Richard. "Rory, follow me, please."

Rory stood obediently, shooting her mother a confused look.

Lorelai shrugged. "I'll send a search party in ten," she mouthed. She watched as they left the room, a sad smile on her face. "My baby's grown up, Lukey."

"Don't call me Lukey, Lorelai," her husband replied, giving her hand a quick squeeze.

Rory followed Emily downstairs into the basement. "Uh, Grandma? What are we doing down here?"

"Help me lift," Emily said briskly, pointing to the other end of a box. "Actually, on second thought, you shouldn't be lifting things. I'll get it." She pulled it down from on top of a pile, and Rory saw that there was another, smaller box on top. Emily handed her the smaller one. "Here," she said with finality.

Rory peeked inside and gasped. "Is this…"

"Your mother's baby blanket. And some other things."

"_Grandma_…"

Emily kissed her forehead. "You're going to have the most beautiful baby. I'm very happy for you, darling." She straightened herself up. "I have to go find Maria. Honestly, is it so hard to inform me when dinner's ready?"

Rory watched her grandmother walk off. In so many ways, she was like Lorelai. And in so many ways, she wasn't.

She sat down in a chair and fingered the soft blanket. She glanced down at her flat stomach and tried to imagine it.

There was a knock on the door. "Ace?"

"Hey," she greeted softly.

He wandered over to her and sat down next to her in the large chair. "What's that?"

"My mom's baby stuff."

"Wow." He pulled her close to him, let her cuddle into his side. He kissed her hair. "Your family's crazy," he whispered.

"My family? Your mom went through our trash!" She giggled as he leaned into her, pressing her into the arm of the chair. She let out a soft sigh as he kissed her. "Missed you," she murmured.

"I missed you more," he replied as he kissed his way down her neck.

She smiled to herself as she felt the heel of his palm against the skin of her stomach. His hands began pushing her shirt upwards. "Logan," she whispered. "We're in my grandparents' house."

"Uh-huh," he replied distractedly.

She locked eyes with him, blue on brown.

"What?" he asked, brushing her bangs out of her eyes.

"Do you think our baby will have my eyes or yours?"

"Yours," he replied automatically. "I think she'll have your eyes."

She grinned, then caught herself, biting her lip. "You think it's a girl?"

"I think that you think it's a girl."

"It doesn't matter."

"Yeah, right. You want a baby girl. Lorelai the millionth."

"The fourth!" she retorted, arching her back so that her hips hit his.

He covered her mouth with his, kissing her fiercely. Soon, she needed to pull away. "I can't breathe."

He laughed. "That's probably not too good for the baby, huh?" He glanced down at her stomach. "I know nothing about being a dad."

She shrugged. "I know nothing about being a mom."

"Says the girl who's one half of the world's best mother-daughter relationship."

"Hey!" a voice called, following by the distinct sound of a fist hitting the door.

"Speak of the devil," muttered Logan.

"Stop doing dirty things and get out here! You've left me alone with my mother for a full ten minutes, Rory! Do you realize how dangerous that is?"

Logan started to get up, but Rory pulled him back down so that she could feel the weight of his body.

"Your mother's going to kill me if she walks in here and finds us like this."

"What can she do? You already knocked me up."

"Logan, you've already stolen my baby, my firstborn, my angel. You cannot leave me alone with Emily!" Lorelai called.

"Just a sec, Mom," Rory called.

"Yeah, just a sec, _Mom_," Logan called pointedly.

"Don't be mean! Make sure everything's buttoned and zipped before you come out here. And Rory, fix your hair. You get really bad sex hair."

"Mom!"

"Hey, kid, I'm just pointing out the obvious."

"I need coffee," Rory sighed as she heard her mother's retreating footsteps.

"Decaf."

"Logan!"

"Hey, my kids are not going to be addicts like you."

She pouted. "Fine."

"Hey. Have I told you how happy I am?"

"You might have mentioned something to that effect."

"I am happy. I am over-the-moon, crazy happy." He leaned down to kiss her stomach before getting up and offering his hand to her. She accepted it, and when she stood, he smirked.

"What?"

"Your mom was right about the hair, Ace."

She ran get fingers through her hair. "Hey, Logan?"

"Hey, Rory?"

"Thanks for telling Grandma."

"You seemed pretty panicked."

"I don't know, I just…I always expected them to flip out when I got pregnant. I mean, I'm not sixteen now. I'm married and everything. I just…I really never expected them to be happy, I guess."

"They are, Ace."

"Yeah," she said, smiling softly as she looked down at the box. "I bet she always thought she'd give that to Mom."

He pulled her to him, his hands on the small of her back. "I promise," he said between kisses, "that your grandparents will be proud of you, and proud of their great-grandkids. I promise not to mess anything up."

"Difficult promises to keep, Huntzberger," Rory commented, undoing the first couple buttons on his shirt.

"Maybe. But I'm madly in love with you, so I think I have a chance." He smirked as she undid a couple more buttons. "What happened to all your excuses?"

"Hey, I've already abandoned Mom. A few more minutes won't hurt."

He smiled at her. "That's my girl."

She stopped him when he leaned in to kiss her and he sighed. She grinned. "You want me that bad, huh?"

He pressed his lips to hers, slipped his tongue into her mouth, and felt her resolve weakening. "Logan," she murmured, "hang on."

He pulled away reluctantly.

"I…what if I'm the one who messes up? What if I'm not a good mother?"

He opened his mouth to reply but he was interrupted by Lorelai. "Baby girl! Richie Rich! I'm opening the door!"

She flung the door open dramatically and walked in with a hand over her eyes. "Is it safe, can I look?"

"Lorelai, what…" Luke asked, coming in behind her. When he saw Logan unbuttoned shirt and Rory's messy hair he said, "Aw, jeez…" and immediately left the room.

"Look what you've done. You've traumatized my husband," Lorelai told them, throwing her hands up in the air. "What did Grandma want, babe?"

"She wanted to give me…your old baby stuff," Rory told her, tucking her hair behind her ears self-consciously.

"Oh, honey. Wow."

Her daughter shot her a soft smile. "Yeah."

Lorelai crossed the room briskly and engulfed her daughter in a tight hug. "Sweetie, I really am happy for you. I mean, you know how I feel about becoming a grandma. But, hon, I just…"

Logan spotted the tears glistening in his mother-in-law's eyes. He placed his hand over hers on Rory's back.

"Honey, you're going to be such a good mother. I know it. Being a mom is just…it's awesome, Rory. It's amazing. And _you_ are going to be _amazing_."

Logan smiled at his wife over Lorelai's shoulder. "You've got your answer," he said softly.


End file.
